Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] On this episode of Cox Talking Gamecocks, a shake up on the football staff, women's basketball roles, and a preview for men's basketball. Okay, here we go.
[00:00:53] Okay.
[00:00:54] Welcome to episode 365 of Cox Talking Gamecocks. I am your host, Tim Cox, where I will keep every episode from 1801 to 2001. Hope y' all had a lovely weekend, Gamecock Nation, and are ready for Christmas. We are right here now. It is the countdown, the home stretch until the big man comes and visits us all. Hope y' all were on the nice list. Gamecock football was certainly not. They were very much on the naughty list and getting lumps of coal accordingly. But that is a story for another day. But, yeah, hope y' all had a great weekend out there.
[00:01:34] College Football Playoff, huh? That's a. A mixed bag. You know, you get this real back and forth, two really good teams going at it, Rocking environment with A and M and Miami. And then you also, of course, you had a really good atmosphere and a good, you know, first three quarters, I would say, really competitive with Alabama and Oklahoma.
[00:01:55] And then you got the two games with the G5 teams and unfortunately confirming a lot of people's biases and theories that it didn't make sense to open it up that much. And maybe the committee left some teams out there that could have been included, but it's the system that we got to play within.
[00:02:11] And I've been on record of saying I want a path and a road for a really good G5 team to make it, but, yeah, it's certainly a little disappointing when you settle in thinking you're going to get back to back playoff caliber college football games and you get an absolute blowout by Ole Miss. And then Oregon, like maybe a little bit close early, played with their food a little bit, but ultimately, you know, a 20 point win or whatever it was. But we have the next round set, powerhouse matchups that we got to wait a couple of weeks for, but it's going to be absolutely amazing. Electric when that rolls around. But nonetheless, hope y' all did have a good weekend. And yeah, looking ahead here to the holidays, I'm going to be doing some traveling, seeing family in different parts of the country.
[00:03:00] It's really like it's a. It's a week that is going to be fun and exciting. I'm looking forward to it, spending time with the fam. But yeah, not like exactly restful, right? Just like driving around, flying, all that jazz. But I won't bore y' all with the gory details. But I think with that there's going to be a holiday disruption of the show. So I'll get one more show out there and it'll be a year in review, sort of a look back that I've done in the past and then we'll pick things back up right in the new year, I think. So right now pencil that in as the schedule.
[00:03:37] So you have today that you're listening to traditional and then a year in review, look back next episode and then we'll have back to our regularly scheduled program in the new year. So be on the lookout for that. I'll post any major updates on social media, but I'll get into it in that year end review. But of course, I appreciate all y' all who have supported me along the way, whether it's this year, this week, since the beginning of the show. I very much appreciate the support. But all right, let's get into things here. Got a few things to cover before we get into scores, starting with the football program. So yeah, I mean, it really is from a.
[00:04:15] If you want to call me a content creator, which I don't know if I'd qualify myself as that, but for a content creator, it's kind of a nice, you know, gift that keeps on giving here, the football program, lots of news. So we'll start small and then go big here. I got some transfer updates for y' all here. Casen Henry, offensive lineman, has decided to enter the transfer portal. Again, this is all stating your intention because it hasn't officially opened yet. But yeah, I mean, you know, wish all the best for Cason. He seemed like a real team player anytime you saw him. He was really engaged and things like that guy can't stay healthy. And maybe again, one of those situations where he could benefit from a change of scenery. Hope he can go somewhere and stay healthy and see where that takes him. He's a really good player when he is healthy. But I talked about it with Trevon Ball, like that group, that position room, I think it's okay to get in some new blood and things like that and get a little bit of change up there. But wish Kaysen nothing but the best. And then wide receiver Brian Rowe deciding to transfer. This one was a little bit of a head scratcher. I was quite surprised to see this. Rowe was a highly recruited prospect, comes to South Carolina, has a decently productive, more than decently productive, true freshman campaign.
[00:05:33] Was someone that I was at least looking forward to make some waves his sophomore year. But I don't know if it's getting the sense of being buried in the depth chart. You saw the emergence of Jaden Sellers. You got a guy like Malik Clark and then there's some other guys in that room like Alex Cyrus who have red shirted and then maybe getting word of some of the upperclassmen who are going to stay and maybe thinking the transfer portal might bring in some guys. I don't know.
[00:05:59] I really didn't see this one coming. But yeah, that's, that's a blow to that room for a guy that showed a lot of potential early in his collegiate career. And yeah, that's going to be one that we certainly miss.
[00:06:13] But then the big news from the football program came on the coaching staff side of things where it's, it's being widely reported and I, I haven't seen like an officially official post but it seems like that this is a done deal that Sterling Lucas, defensive ends coach is leaving South Carolina to take the defensive line job at lsu.
[00:06:38] Now this just came out of left field for me. I mean I've seen some posts that say like no, this was rumored that maybe he was looking elsewhere and whatnot. He has been a fantastic coach for South Carolina, a massive asset to on the recruiting trail but also developing guys in that group. Kyle Kennard really can thank Sterling Lucas for his Nagursky award winning season because he came in with pretty middle of the road numbers. His career comes to South Carolina, gets coached up by Lucas and has a fantastic season and boosts his draft stock. You look at a guy like Brian Thomas who over the last couple of seasons has developed well. Thank you to Sterling Lucas. Dylan Stewart. Now we're going to talk about Dylan Stewart here was recruited hard by Sterling Lucas and has been being developed under him. And so you look at the impact that Sterling Lucas has had, it's going to be massive shoes to fill there. But hopefully there was a little bit of a sense that this was coming and I would imagine that between Clayton White, Beamer, maybe a guy like Darren Ursher, like these guys have contacts, of course Jeremiah Donati as well. Hopefully if slash when this becomes official we can have a new outside linebacker edge coach come in and pretty seamlessly pick up those pieces. It's going to be big shoes to fill. He's a really good coach but you got to be able to bring in someone who has experience, who can develop mental because that group is going to need it this upcoming season. Which brings us to Dylan Stewart.
[00:08:19] Now I don't have anything to report here, okay. I'm not an Insider, I'm not an expert, I'm not trying to be. I've said that countless times here. The first thing that went to my mind when I heard Sterling Lucas was going to LSU was that Dylan Stewart is going to be packing a bag and going with him because Dylan has been on record saying that he is grateful to the coaching that he has received for Sterling Lucas. Right. And when you read these articles and you see the posts and things like that about will Dylan transfer or not, Lucas always came up as a reason he would want to stay because he was a guy that he believed could get him in the best position to get, have the most impact on the field in the short term, but then long term develop for the NFL.
[00:09:06] So my mind went to a conspiracy or a not so conspiracy of Lane Kiffin wanting to get Dylan Stewart to lsu. Stewart says, well, Sterling Lucas is my guy. I'm going to stay at South Carolina because of him. And Kiffin says, okay, no problem, I'm going to hire him.
[00:09:22] I don't know where we stand with Dylan Stewart. I've seen conflicting reports and I've initially it seemed like he was gone.
[00:09:30] And now when you read more about it and you know, people who claim to have sources say it's maybe having some more optimism that he returns. So I don't have an answer right now. What I will say is that I think a week or so ago I would have said I think Stewart's going to stay.
[00:09:49] Now it feels like a coin flip for me personally.
[00:09:53] And if you got your position coach who you trust with your NFL future going to a different place, who you know is going to just throw a ton of cash at you, that's going to be tempting and that's going to be hard to say no to. So if Shane Beamer can retain Dylan Stewart, that is a hats off moment for Beamer and Clayton White and anyone involved on that defense, I would even put Coach Robertson there, right? I would get him in Stewart's ear. Because the fact is Dylan Stewart is a brand name at this point. He is a household name for someone who is like in the world of college football, especially the sec, right?
[00:10:32] So he's already on the radar of scouts, like he's a first round talent today, right?
[00:10:39] So I really don't know, you know, like when you talk about, well, if you go to lsu, like, yes, next season, you get a pay raise in all likelihood, yes, you have the continuity of that one position coach, you're going to be in a new defensive system, you know, you're going to be, you know, in a new uniform, you got to move. You got to do everything.
[00:11:02] If you stay at South Carolina, you don't really have to uproot yourself or anything like that. You have all the connections with the entire defensive staff.
[00:11:10] He had a bond with incoming recruit Julian Walker, and I'm sure other guys, you have a chance to be a leader. You have a chance to chase some of these records at South Carolina, have a. Have a chance to really make a name for yourself, which is kind of rare nowadays in college football. So maybe, just maybe with, you know, a good sit down with Clayton White and Beamer, and, you know, assuming this all transpires with Lucas leaving, you bring in a coach who has a track record of coaching good players, a track record of getting guys to develop and, you know, going to the next level, maybe Stuart stays.
[00:11:50] You know, he's getting paid here. I don't know how much, but he's, you know, he's getting. He's getting, you know, rewarded handsomely, I'm sure.
[00:11:58] And you're already a surefire first round pick in my mind. You know, I think it's a matter of, are we talking, can we get you to top 15, can we get you to top 10 type of stuff, right? So you got to bring in a coach who can point to a couple players and say, this is what I helped them do. And maybe a fresh voice would help Stewie, you know, he's so good. He has the freak athleticism. His bend is insane. But maybe there is a world where a different voice teaches him one or two things that he didn't master before.
[00:12:33] And his stock goes up because he now has that in his arsenal. So we'll see. That's probably the biggest thing that, you know, us die hard Gamecock football junkies are tracking right now and are sitting on pins and needles for.
[00:12:48] And I would imagine we're gonna find out in the next week or so. You know, Beamer went out there and, you know, someone asked him, like, when do you want to know some of these decisions by? And he said he's not putting, like a firm date out there. But you do have the portal opening up in the first week of January.
[00:13:04] And, you know, you gotta be prepared of what to do when you talk about rev share and things like that. So there's planning involved. And he said, I need to know as he put that in the media. And I think that's why you see a Brian Rowe, Kayson Henry, these guys who maybe were on the fence a little bit Saying, all right, well, I'm gonna go.
[00:13:23] And so fingers crossed for Stewie. I mean, you know, it's just so funny. You get, you get so excited, right, to talk about Gamecock football again because Kendall Briles and you're thinking of the possibilities that exist with Lenoris and him and harbor and like, okay, we could get this running back and all we got to do is sure up the offensive line through the portal this, that you start to get excited and then bam, one of your best defensive assistants is going to leave to this new evil empire of college football. And now you're like, holy crap, is our best defensive player going to go with them? And it's just like, it's like the opposite of, you know, once I thought I was out, they pull me back in. It's like I'm in, and then they're going to push me away once more. So maybe put on your Christmas list that Dylan Stewart stays. Let's all do that collectively.
[00:14:12] That's a good deal. But all right, I've rambled enough about hypotheticals for several months from now, even though you know, we're gonna find out Stewie soon enough. But let's, let's talk basketball here. So starting with the men here. No game to report here. They are back in action Monday, late afternoon, 4 o', clock, tip off at home against SC State. So we'll look to get back into the win column. And you know, it hasn't been a problem against the lesser competition with the guys talked about that at length the other episode, but hopefully we can see some of the things that plague them against Clemson and then also against some of the other power four teams that we've played. Hopefully we see that look better because you got to start somewhere, right? So let's get the threes falling in this game and then they're off for about a week and close things out against Albany on the 30th. And then I think it's SEC play. Yeah, I think that might round out non conference.
[00:15:09] So, yeah, wish the best of luck for the Q Zips to end out the year strong. You know, that'd be nice, a little two game win streak, try to get some momentum, work out some of these rotations. Hopefully Eli Ellis is back. He was, you know, just day to day, it seemed like last I saw. But yeah, that's your update for the Q Zips and for the ladies. They were in action over the weekend. But let's go back to Thursday because I feel bad when I, you know, I record these things. Thursday evenings for Friday morning and sometimes the ladies are still in action. So they took on USF Thursday evening and it was a domination. Winning 103, 44, I mean, big time. Sheesh. Jumped out to a 13 point lead in the first quarter and really did not look back. And by the fourth quarter it was just domination. I think South Florida ran out of gas and we kept things up there, so really dominated there. Joyce Edwards with a monster day against the bulls here with 34 points. I talked a lot about Joyce Edwards last year. Haven't really dove into it a lot this year, I think just kind of waiting for conference play to come around and really when the rubber meets the road. But that was a player, she is a player who I had pegged as sort of that next building block for Dawn. And it might not happen this year, but you can see in year three or four, whatever it may be, that that that's the type of player that Don can build a championship contender around. You know, you go back to Cardozo, Boston, Asia, like there's just been these stalwarts who can kind of do it all for you. And that's what Joyce does. That's, you know, she really reminds me a lot of Asia, right. And just the way she moves and things like that. But 34 points is a fantastic effort there. Tessa Johnson with 16 as well. And then Saturday afternoon, if you weren't watching football, you watching Gamecock women's basketball as they were taking on Florida Gulf coast and kind of similar to the other team from South Florida, they defeated them 105 to 43. Just a butt whooping, consistently keeping FGCU down offensively. Jumped out to a big lead in the first quarter and very similarly to Thursday, did not look back there. So just complete domination for the ladies. Joyce Edwards with a double double 29 and 10.
[00:17:34] Medina with 27 points. Tania Laatson with 15 herself. And it's just a nice little one, two punch there. Quick turnaround from the ladies. Some travel involved there. Did not slow them down whatsoever. And just things that you absolutely love to see. The ladies are off this week. Little holiday break. They deserve it. They are back in action Sunday the 28th against Providence. And then I think they turn right around and it's on New Year's Day. They take. They will take on Alabama. Yeah, New Year's Day, 2pm That's a nice way to ring in the new year. Gonna be on your couch. Anyway, put on the LCC play.
[00:18:16] Bama versus Carolina Women's basketball. So that'll be fun to track and then yeah, we'll get right back into it with reviewing them and everything like that. So stay tuned for the year end episode. As far as this episode go, that wraps it up. Please follow me on social media Twitter or X is Cox gamecox Instagram is just the name of the show. Cox Talking Gamecox. And please like subscribe and review the podcast. I appreciate all y' all go Cox.
